7 small changes busy people can make to become a better world citizen

Don't opt for one-day shipping if you don't need it. One-day shipping requires more high-burning shipping trucks to be on the road at once.

As we settle into the New Year, we're force-fed the usual self-improvement soup. Green smoothie recipes crop up on even the greasiest food blogs. Beautiful bullet journals shame the Post-it note to-do lists stuck to your fridge. Buff people in neon sports gear preface every YouTube video you watch, swearing that (insert trendy exercise class) will change your life. While there's nothing wrong with this brand of self-improvement, it just isn't feasible for everyone. Lifestyle reversals take time and money, and—if you're anything like me—you don't have either in abundance.

So this year, some new resolutions are in order. Something small enough to slip into a cramped timetable, yet big enough so that completing the goal is an accomplishment. Something self-satisfying but with a greater impact than that one week you ate a salad for lunch every day. In 2018, we're going to become better citizens: people who are aware of their impact on the planet, politics, and other citizens and who put their awareness to good use.

Sound too daunting? Here are seven low cost, low effort ways to be a better world citizen without even trying.

1) Say goodbye to plastic…

Plastic bags are more destructive than any natural predator: they block fish's digestive tracts, get lodged in shark's gills, ensnare birds in trees, contaminate soil and water. University of Georgia researchers even estimate that the oceans hold five plastic bags for every foot of coastline.

So if you prefer your tuna salad sans plastic garnish, stow a few cloth totes in your car or bag for shopping trips. Not only do they protect against environmental degradation, reusable shopping bags ensure you'll never again have to balance three dozen eggs and a head of broccoli under your arm due to a bagging mishap. If you want to go the extra mile, you can also use lightweight cotton pouches to bag produce while shopping.

2) …and paper too.

While we may make sure to print everything double-sided and recycle our junk mail, we often don't register the amount of paper we use daily as paper towels. Rather than using a roll of Bounty for that biweekly (okay, let's be honest—biannual) house dusting, opt for microfiber cleaning cloths. Not only are they often more effective at cleaning spills and dust, they can be washed hundreds of times and still be sanitary. For an even more cost-effective option, you could cut ratty t-shirts or sweatpants into rags.

3) Don't jump on one-day shipping.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

We're all a bit like Veruca Salt from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ("I WANT IT NOW!"). But while it may be satisfying to receive a new shirt within twenty-four hours of hitting "buy," expedited shipping wreaks havoc on the environment. Although online shopping typically consumes less energy than traditional shopping, one-day shipping requires more high-burning shipping trucks to be on the road at once, adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Because of the short time window, shipping companies also won't bundle orders heading to the same area, meaning delivery workers will have to drive or fly to that area repeatedly, using more fossil fuels during travel. So if your purchase isn't time-sensitive, resist the allure of $1 one-day.

4) Search greener.

Good news! You can help Mother Nature just by searching videos of novelty soap-making (the most satisfying kind of video, let's be honest). The search engine Ecosia plants trees using ad revenue generated from searches. While switching search engines may sound unappealing, Ecosia is very user friendly with a two-minute extension installation process for computers, a free app for mobile devices, and a format and response speed comparable to Google or Safari. Ecosia is attempting to plant one billion trees by 2020 and needs all the usership it can get within the next two years to accomplish its goal.

5) Be less cruel.

While it's nearly impossible to buy exclusively ethical products (capitalism, am I right?), buying cruelty-free makeup is much easier than you would think. In fact, you probably have bunny-safe makeup in your bathroom already, whether you knew it beforehand or not. Although some big-name drugstore cosmetics brands rely on animal testing (Covergirl, L'Oreal, Rimmel, etc.), others at the same price point do not (e.l.f, NYX, Wet n' Wild). There are also a plethora of higher quality, cruelty-free makeup brands beloved by makeup artists and celebrities (tarte, Fenty Beauty, Kat Von D, Sonia Kashuk). Next time you're perusing the cosmetics aisle, spend an extra ten seconds checking for the leaping bunny (no animal testing) logo on the product label.

6) Donate your change.

Does anyone actually use pennies anymore? When's the last time you paid for something in nickels and dimes?

While we often don't notice small change, charities can turn the two pennies change from your coffee order into progress. Founded by grassroots activists, the new service Appolition takes spare change from credit or debit purchases and puts it toward bail for an impoverished citizen facing incarceration without conviction. Secure, cancelable, and requiring no active effort on your part, services like Appolition are a great way to make an impact on your community without much commitment or financial burden.

7) Get to know your politicians.

Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris. Getty Images/Alex Wong

The 2018 mid-year elections could be a decisive turning point in American politics. In 2018, resolve to delve beyond what your controversial aunt blasts on Facebook and get a sense of your local politicians and candidates. This can be as simple as a ten minute perusal of candidate platforms, a sweep of PolitiFact, and a look through the congressional voting record and a record of candidates' donors. A dose of undiluted news will foster better decisions and firmer opinions.

Here's to a year of busy--but better--world citizens!

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